Bluefish again dominate the action along the shore, but there has been a slight increase in fluke activities. The most interesting news, though, is that weakfish have moved into northern Jersey waters. Fishing is understandably quiet on the freshwater scene because of the past week's very hot weather, but still fish are being caught by those who are willing to work at it. On the bright side, the hottest part of summer is the best time to catch big largemouth bass. The action is a lot slower, but the biggest fish of the year are caught at this time.

Local anglers looking for a fall fishing fix should seriously consider a day trip to the New Jersey shore, where the striper run is in full swing and fish over 30 pounds are being taken with regularity. Tackle shop reporters say striped bass up to 38 pounds, including many in the 20-to-30-pound range, were caught over the weekend. Action is good both in the surf and from boats. With cold weather expected to last through the week, experts predict even more large bass will move into the area and begin feeding on the large schools of bunker and other baitfish concentrated just off the beaches.

September is shaping up as an excellent fishing month along the coast but freshwater fishing is still generallly slow. The cooler temperatures, though, could improve local fishing conditions very fast. Although several species of fish are active at the shore now, the weakfish is definitely the glamour fish. It has the bright attractive coloration of a brook trout and a little further south is referred to as a sea trout, even though it is not in the trout or salmon family. The weakfish is very active right now from Margate south to Cape May and Delaware Bay. The other hot spot is Sandy Hook Bay but the action did slow down somewhat this week, probably due to windy conditions.

Judging from the scant shad reports filtering into area tackle shops, it appears the main run could be nearing its end, particularly from Easton downriver. On a brighter note, some stripers are being caught around Trenton so it won't be long before these rod benders enter the Bucks and Northampton County stretches of the Delaware River. In the interim, crappies and pickerel have turned on in most area lakes. And with walleye and muskie season in full swing, expect forthcoming reports on these deep dwellers.

NICK HROMIAK (A free-lance story for The Morning Call) and TOM FEGELY, The Morning Call | August 24, 2000

Action remains steady in fresh and salt waters with both smallmouth and largemouth bass keeping anglers busy in area lakes and rivers, notably Wallenpaupack and Pecks Pond and the Delaware River in upper Northampton County. The Lehigh River is also yielding some smallmouth action, along with reports of a few steelhead raised and released by the L.R. Stocking Assn. Catfish surpassing 10 pounds are also on the prowl and hitting baits from Blue Marsh to Nockamixon and in the three rivers.

Remember the heydays of the big Delaware Bay weakfish bonanza? Anglers from the L.V. and other parts of the Northeast didn't let spring escape without a trip to the bay to catch weakfish -- known also as sea trout -- which weighed up to 15 pounds and were often caught on every few casts. But no longer. The weakfish is in serious trouble, according to Lou Rodia, editor of Eastern Outdoors and a former fishing information director in Cape May County. "In the glory years in the late 1970s and well into the next decade, 10-pound-plus weakfish were commonplace in the spring in Delaware Bay," says Rodia.

By the time Hurricane Charlie hit the Jersey shore it had been downgraded to a tropical storm and it didn't even turn out to be much of a serious storm either. But the winds and rain accompanying did slow down the saltwater fishing. The good news though is that the water has been stirred up (raising the oxygen level) and cooled down (it had been unseasonably high along most of the coast). Conditions should be better this weekend and hopefully so will the fishing. Fishing had been decent along the shore before the rains and winds hit earlier this weekend and there is no reason it shouldn't continue to be so. One favorable factor is that we are rapidly approaching September, traditionally one of the best fishing months of the year - that is if the weather holds.

The long Labor Day weekend is upon us and we can now look forward to some of the best fishing of the year. Not only will the waters be less crowded but the fish will be in a better mood as they traditionally are in late summer and early fall. Right now saltwater fishing is very good - perhaps the best it has been all season so far - and unless some terrible weather system drops on top of us, conditions should be good for the weekend.Freshwater fishing is still slow but at least it is beginning to show some signs of picking up. There seems to be plenty of action up and down the coast.

Bluefish are strong, fluke are spotty and bottom fishing steady along the Jersey coast. Weakfish are showing up in certain areas and there's tuna offshore. All-in-all, could be one of those good late August saltwater weekends. Fishing is very slow inland, but, then, that's normal for this time of year. Lots of things happening on both sides of Sandy Hook. Fluke fishing in the bay is still good. To be sure, there has been some slow days but the fluking is a lot better than most areas along the coast.

There have been some improvements in saltwater fishing this past week but freshwater fishing still remains in the summer doldrums. The good news for freshwater anglers, however, is that we are rapidly approaching September, one of the better months for fishing. This is when the water temperatures start dropping and the sun is at a different angle - never directly overhead again. This combination, along with several other factors, bring the fish back into the shallows. These are the same fish that have been around all summer but now they are easier to get out. Until not too many years ago, most anglers didn't fish in September.

NICK HROMIAK (A free-lance story for The Morning Call) and TOM FEGELY, The Morning Call | August 24, 2000

Action remains steady in fresh and salt waters with both smallmouth and largemouth bass keeping anglers busy in area lakes and rivers, notably Wallenpaupack and Pecks Pond and the Delaware River in upper Northampton County. The Lehigh River is also yielding some smallmouth action, along with reports of a few steelhead raised and released by the L.R. Stocking Assn. Catfish surpassing 10 pounds are also on the prowl and hitting baits from Blue Marsh to Nockamixon and in the three rivers.

Each week we expect tackle shop contacts and boat captains to report a "crash" in fishing action. And each week we've been pleasantly surprised. Conditions and catch rates, it seems, aren't all that terrible despite heat, humidity and low water. On the freshwater front, panfish are stealing the show in the Poconos and a few Lehigh Valley waters. Add to that some optimistic reports on smallmouth and a few lunker largemouths on the take. Although the rivers and streams are low with plenty of exposed shoreline rocks, the pools and deeper riffles are holding and yielding trout.

For the third straight week, angling updates from our tackle shop and boat captain reporters are lengthy and varied, indicating some of the year's best fishing is under way. Freshwater highlights include walleye and pickerel, trout and stripers and a variety of panfish. Fly fishermen are seeing several hatches and are matching them accordingly while Lehigh River trout fishermen are scoring on some of the lunkers raised and released by the Lehigh River Stocking Association. On the shad scene, some fishermen continue to take two or three dozen migrants a day (or more)

The Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce recently announced the unveiling of its new brochure "The Best of Bucks County," a guide to the lifestyle of the county. The 12-page guide provides information on housing styles, shopping, the arts and the county's accessibility to larger metropolitan areas such as New York and Philadelphia. The guide features information on the Centennial, Central Bucks, Council Rock and New Hope-Solebury school districts. A museum listing also is provided. The brochure was developed, designed and produced by Chamber members.

With the onset of autumn-like weather conditions, the Atlantic coastline seems primed for a hot season of fall fishing. Up and down the New Jersey shore, boats trolling for bluefish are meeting great success. "We've just started to get into the `slammer' blues. These fish are going anywhere from 15 to 20 pounds each," boasted Captain Phillip Sciortino from the Tackle Box in Hazlet. "We should also start picking up loads of striped bass on plugs once the blues start the thin out."

Those of us who mourn the loss of the Delaware Bay sea trout (aka weakfish) fishery of a decade and more ago will applaud a new effort by Delaware and New Jersey conservation agencies to put a stop to overharvesting. A joint investigation of weakfish harvests by commercial netters -- at the core of the dramatic reduction in a once-spectacular fishery -- by the N.J. Department of Fish, Game & Wildlife and the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife revealed continued abuses. Ten summonses were issued for illegal possession and sale of weakfish in the Garden State.

Fishing activity was held down considerably this past week by high winds and rain. But cheer up, late October fishing can be productive. Freshwater fishing is also slow, probably for the same reasons. However, river fishing for smallmouth bass has been improving, as well as largemouth bass fishing on the small Pocono lakes. And anyone interested in mob scenes can try the Pulaski, N.Y., area for salmon. Closer to home, the Fish Commission will stock 4,000 rainbow sometimes next week at Leaser Lake.

Heavy rain and high winds didn't exactly wash out Labor Day weekend fishing, but they certainly slowed it down considerably. Not all the areas along the shore were hard hit by rain, but the mere threat undoubtedly kept many fishermen away. And because the weather was even worse inland, freshwater fishing was almost a complete wipeout. The only bright spot is that it looks like a good September. Before the rains came, fluke fishing was improving, bluefishing was still good, bottom fishing was producing more and more seabass and weakfish were active in certain areas.

Remember the heydays of the big Delaware Bay weakfish bonanza? Anglers from the L.V. and other parts of the Northeast didn't let spring escape without a trip to the bay to catch weakfish -- known also as sea trout -- which weighed up to 15 pounds and were often caught on every few casts. But no longer. The weakfish is in serious trouble, according to Lou Rodia, editor of Eastern Outdoors and a former fishing information director in Cape May County. "In the glory years in the late 1970s and well into the next decade, 10-pound-plus weakfish were commonplace in the spring in Delaware Bay," says Rodia.

Blues in the night -- and day -- demand the angler's attention along the Atlantic Coast right now, with catches being made from the Highlands to Cape May, in the back bays and the offshore waters. Warmth has brought the blues to life nearly everywhere along the Jersey shore with surf anglers, baysiders, party boaters and offshore trollers catching everything from small snapper blues to 18-plus pound slammers. If you've never caught these abundant summer predators and would like to give it a try, a few words of advice.